Danastien Stormfyre-Bloodfury
"He destroyed what we were, and gave us life anew. He gave us a rebirth we sought, when our own blood failed us. When our leaders turned to the flame and damned us by their actions, he offered us salvation. When we were at our most powerless and lost, he gave us the strength to stand and a purpose to live for. We fight for those we called our kin, but we are not part of their mortal world any longer. We are Demon Hunters. We are Illidari. Illidan is our Father." - Danastien on Illidan Stormrage. "I have felt the so-called salvation of the Light in my veins, Blood Knight. I felt it even as I was powerless to stop my Prince from betraying our entire species, and I felt it as I fled in shame when it failed to offer me salvation from the madness of those I had called comrades. Do not lecture me on the salvation of the Light. Do not condescend with your offers of sympathy. The emerald fire burns in my veins, and I embrace its inferno, for it allows me something the Light never did: vengeance." ''- '''Danastien '''to a Blood Knight. History Birth and Childhood (Age 0-15) Firstborn child of Lord Venastien and Lady Voraelia Stormfyre-Bloodfury, Danastien was followed quickly from the womb by his twin sister Dastania, wailing at the first touch of air within their infant lungs. The only children their parents would ever produce, Danastien's childhood was one of pampered luxury by the standards of House Bloodfury; raised with no expense spared in clothing, given everything desired from books to mock weaponry, and granted immense freedom during his formative years, the young Danastien was a carefree and warm-hearted child, protective of his sister, and displaying a natural penchant for leadership despite his inclination towards laziness. The Crucible (Age 15-110) Upon reaching the age of fifteen, Danastien and Dastania--as was tradition for House Bloodfury and its banner-houses--were taken from their parents to train with the unrelenting instructors of the Bloodfury Prime House. Transferred to Bloodfury Fortress, and bedded down in as basic a manner as possible, the shock of transition from their life of luxury to one of near-poverty in comparison was only the beginning of the twins' harsh indoctrination into Bloodfury culture. Cut off from friends and parents, Danastien found himself falling into the role of a soldier during some of the most integral years of his life. Eating in a standard mess hall alongside other Bloodfury children with the Gift--identified by their black, or in some extremely rare cases, blood red hair--and being taught in grouped classes about thalassian strategy, tactics, and the various enemies facing their nation: Danastien soon found himself forced to become harder both physically and emotionally, simply to survive. Thrown regularly into sparring matches with children his own age and older, tested against experienced veterans and new recruits of the Bloodfury Forces both, and often receiving new bruises before the old ones had properly healed--Danastien found only one point of solace in the gruelling, intense years of his training: the company of his twin sister, Dastania. Coming to rely on her as an immovable source of faith and strength, he threw himself into his development in the Bloodfury way of life, working to perfect each lesson with gusto that stood in flagrant opposition to his natural laziness. He aggressively pursued command of the unarmed combat forms that were taught to them with religious regularity. As he grew, he came to understand more intimately the strengths and weaknesses inherent to his body; and gain a far clearer comprehension of what it meant to ''be both a Stormfyre and a Bloodfury. Between sparring sessions, and his classes of strategy and tactics, Danastien underwent thorough and unrelenting mental training and preparation indoctrination; learning to centre and calm his mind, seek a void of cold emotion despite a churning mass of emotion, and learn to worship the only Faith that the Bloodfury line believed in: The War. To Danastien, there was a kind of appealing clarity in the simplicity of the Bloodfury belief; they were born to embrace the day of their death, and as such, death held no fear for them. To the scions of his bloodline, dating back to their Ancestors, the idea of death was akin to bearing the weight of a feather. A paltry detail that mattered not a whit in the grand scheme; for simply put, it was inevitable. Instead, the true test lay in forever adhering to the mountain-like duty that was placed upon each Bloodfury's shoulders. To protect Quel'thalas. To safeguard the Sunstriders. To continue the bloodline. These three tenets were burned into Danastien's mind like fire, scorched into his being and etched onto his soul. Kingdom, King, Kin. The three primary focuses of the Bloodfury line, and any child born with their double-edged Gift. As the ninety-five years of his Crucible dragged on, Danastien grew larger of body and firmer of mind, quickly becoming a master of the twin-swords combat style. Relentless and unyielding, he fell into a discipline that exemplified aggression over defense, throwing himself into each engagement with fatalistic devotion to the call of his banner, refusing to admit defeat even to the point of being beaten unconscious, and never offering surrender to even the most easily dispatched of opponents. By the time he finished his Crucible, by the time he reached his hundred-and-tenth birthday, received his Runes and forged his Runeweapons, and swore his eternal loyalty to the Crimson Throne--Danastien had changed. Gone was the smiling child that ran free amongst the green pastures of his family estates. Gone was the naive youth that dreamed of a life of luxury and sloth. Gone was the boy that saw no greater goal than his own easy happiness. In his place, a man had been raised; forged in the fire of battle, and tempered by the bloody marks of his defeats. Danastien had entered his crucible, and unlike some of his unworthy kin, had emerged with the vast majority a Bloodfury in full. With his twin standing at his side, he left the Bloodfury Fortress on the side of the River Elrendar, and rode south for his home for the first time in nearly a hundred years, his blades on his hips, and a mountain of duty upon his back. Category:Characters Category:Blood Elf Category:Demon Hunters Category:Illidari Category:House of Bloodfury Category:Will of Dath'remar Category:New Horde